The Selected Writings Of Benjamin Franklin Vol 1

Author : Albert Henry Smyth
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781331260691
Total Pages : 466 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (66 download)

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Download or read book The Writings of Benjamin Franklin, Vol. 1 written by Albert Henry Smyth and published by . This book was released on 2015-07-12 with total page 466 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from The Writings of Benjamin Franklin, Vol. 1: Collected and Edited With a Life and Introduction The writings of Benjamin Franklin have been several times published. It is nearly ninety years since William Temple Franklin completed the long delayed edition of his grandfather's works; it is seventy years since Jared Sparks began the publication of his ten laborious volumes; and it is almost twenty years since Mr. John Bigelow prepared what then seemed to be the final edition of Franklin's works and correspondence. W. T. Franklin's edition is no longer of the slightest value to the student of history. He was devoid of literary facility, and was overwhelmed by the magnitude of his task. In his work there is neither sense of proportion nor judgement in selection. Jared Sparks, by unwearied industry, rendered a great service to American history, and preserved from oblivion many historical papers of the highest importance; but he was disloyal to his author, and took liberties with his documents. He corrected and altered at pleasure. In an attempt to give a classic pose to his heroes, he revised spelling and grammar, and omitted passages which he deemed beneath the dignity of history, and gave no sign withal that he had tampered with either style or substance. Mr. Bigelow based his edition upon Mr. Stevens's collection of Franklin papers, then recently purchased by the United States Government, and published much that was new and invaluable. Unquestionably his edition is the best that has yet appeared, albeit that, here and there, he has overlooked, or at least not corrected, the defective transcripts made by Sparks. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.